A secluded island thirty-five miles off the coast of New York
An unknown underground facility
04:35
"Maybe I need to stop wearing these at all."
Ada lost her coat sometime during the eighth hour, and wouldn't you know it, she's wearing a highly impractical cocktail dress underneath, though paired with a standard bulletproof vest. In her defense, Hunnigan called them in while they were in the middle of an undercover mission.
Leon chuckles. "You know what they say—when you have a mission at 5 and have a date at 6."
It's not their fault they were deployed with barely enough time to prepare. Hunnigan reasoned that the mission was very time sensitive and they were the closest agents to the location. It's very crucial, Leon, Ada. I'm really sorry. It's out of my hands, she had said.
Ada had one knee on the ground and was picking the lock of the only route out of the underground labyrinth. She momentarily stops her fiddling to give him a playful grin.
"Oh and who's my date?" She jokingly asks. "You?"
It has been a while since they've had a quiet moment, and Leon takes the opportunity to survey her condition. After ten hours of fighting and running, she was covered in dirt, her clothing stained and ripped.
Still, she manages to take his breath away.
Leon chuckles. "Yeah, why not?" During their last (rudely interrupted) mission, being each other's date is usually their default undercover role anyway.
She rises and Leon moves closer to her, his back facing the door. She looks at him, flirtation suddenly gone from her face. She nods grimly.
"I'm ready."
He nods back and opens the door slightly to take a peek. He gives her a signal and they go inside with Ada leading the way.
He glances behind him often, in case they missed anything. The new B.O.W.'s operated via scent and were deathly quiet. He has to make sure they aren't followed. With their recon done, they only need to escape and a chopper was waiting for them above ground. One last push and then they can have dinner. Well, breakfast more like, since the mission took all night.
"Looks like the coast is clear."
As if on cue, they hear waves of explosions and the ground shakes. Leon holds her steady as bits of concrete and plaster rain over their bodies.
"Dammit." He curses. "You okay?"
She wipes the dust off her eyes. "You spoke too soon." She says in a teasing tone.
Leon frowns. He knows she's only keeping up appearances. They hear metal crashing from afar. That is not a good sign.
A new wave of determination washes over her face.
"Come on. We can't stay here."
They enter the next room only to find the exit blocked with large sections of rubble. He hears Ada curse. They both know they can't go back out there. The only reason they managed to survive this whole labyrinth was by using Ada's perfume to throw those monsters off their scent. They've used the last drop of it along with Ada's coat to escape a horde two hours ago.
Now, they've effectively trapped themselves in a small enclosure. Once all the false scent trails have been discovered, those monsters are going to hone in on their real location. It's only a matter of time.
She leads them behind the largest desk in the room for some cover. He watches Ada take inventory of her remaining supplies. Leon is down to his last pistol magazine along with his trusty knife. They could probably turn around and, by some miracle, go out the way the came in.
The odds are bleak. Too bleak.
"Listen, Ada."
She doesn't look up at him, painstakingly reloading her rifle, bullet by bullet. One, two, three…
"What is it?"
She rummages through the drawers and containers around them. He watches her do it with full concentration, almost paying him no mind. She grabs an empty bottle with liquid and takes out her pack.
He briefly glances at the two exits, one blocked, and the other leading to certain death. He wonders how many times he had faced situations this dire.
"I might never get another chance to say this." He says, before realizing the full weight of what he means to tell her.
Ada takes out a bottle of alcohol. "I think this might work—" Leon catches her wrist, stilling her movement. Finally, she looks up at him, curious.
He tucks her hair to her ear so he can see both of her eyes in full. Then he puts his hand on her shoulder.
"I love you."
Wordlessly, Ada grabs his vest and pulls him in without warning, giving him a quick, full kiss. Leon doesn't even get the chance to form a cohesive thought when Ada grins and throws a bottle of liquid at the exit door. It explodes and clears enough space for them to go through.
"What?" He turns to her in equal parts confusion and awe.
She stands and looks down on him with a smirk. "A lady needs to hear those words properly."
Gods, this woman.
Without a second to waste, Ada pulls him up and they move through the exit. He notices the ground elevation rising and they walk carefully towards their freedom.
Leon reloads his pistol as they go. Almost there. He feels hope creeping up his chest.
He brings himself to say, "We still on for that date?"
"Let's get out of here first."
"You got it." Leon shakes his head and lets out a relieved breath.
He never should've doubted their ability to survive, especially when together.
Above ground
Around an hour and twenty minutes later
05:55
The chopper is small, just enough for four people. Ada closes her eyes, trying to relax. All her muscles ache and she's desperate for a warm bath with scented candles. She craves for lavender.
Another day in hell…
"Ada, c'mhere." Without waiting for her to respond, Leon wraps one arm around her and gently guides her head to lean on him. She doesn't like affection when they're not in the privacy of their room but she's so tired, she doesn't protest.
Ada lets her whole body fall onto him, and Leon finds the weight comforting. To his bewilderment, she grabs hold of his free hand, squeezes it once and rubs her fingers repeatedly over all the tiny scars he accumulated in his years of service.
He closes his eyes too and rests his head atop of hers. Leon would have fallen asleep if not for the radio buzzing, Just finishing up in here. We'll be ready for take off in 15 minutes. Please standby.
"Leon."
"Hmm?" Ada finds it endearing; how drowsy he sounded.
"Can we move our date tomorrow? I'm exhausted." Feeling the hum of her voice feels good to him. I can fall asleep to that.
He wants more time with her so he offers, "What about I just go to your place and we'll order take out? We can watch whatever mindless thing is on TV or just sleep."
"I'd like that." Her voice is getting fainter.
Leon kisses the top of her head, casting a spell of serenity that ripples all throughout her body. Ada realizes then that she wants this to last, and wants to rearrange her life to accommodate this radiance that surrounds them—to make it stay and build a whole new life around it.
Before Ada could think, she blurts out, "Can I tell you something?"
The seriousness of her tone rouses Leon into full alert so he straightens up to face her. His hand never leaving hers, he looks at her face with intent.
"What is it?"
Ada lets out a quick, deep sigh before responding. It's something she has been thinking about for quite some time. She places a hand on his thigh, gathering strength. Leon responds by placing his other hand on top of it, covering and holding hers. I got you. Don't worry, what is it?
Her expression hardens. "These past few years, I've done all the work the government has required me to do. They got a lot more than they've asked for and I'd like to retire. I've earned it." She expels it all in one breath, surprising herself.
She feels Leon squeeze her hand. "You're right."
Ada breaks his gaze and looks onto the floor. Opening up like this was still something they were working on and Leon understands how hard it is for her.
"Let's ask Hunnigan as soon as we get back." When she still doesn't turn to him, he touches her chin gingerly and tilts her head up. Look at me.
Leon bumps his forehead to hers and they stay like that for a moment. "She can help us, okay?"
Us. Ada loves how he thinks of them as a pair. Yes, us.
Her face blooms in the soft light of daybreak. To Leon, Ada looks even more ethereal with all the dirt and grime. What are those if not a testament to what they've been through together? He cups her face and brushes his lips against hers. He allows himself to linger there and she lets him.
When he pulls back, he trails his fingers through her scalp, knowing how much the gesture calms her.
"Go rest for now. I'll keep watch." Leon hands her the earplugs so she can sleep through the whole one-hour flight to the mainland.
Once more, he wraps his arm around her and shifts his body to accommodate hers. Ada nestles in, thankful for his warmth. She plants a kiss on his shoulder.
"I love you," she admits so, so softly, afraid that he might hear it. But it's true isn't it?
It's barely a whisper, but the words ring true and he hears it clearly and it tugs the corners of his mouth.
"I'll wake you when we land," he says to her, though he knows she can't possibly hear him. He places a kiss on her forehead and it was the last thing Ada feels before finally succumbing to a blissful, dreamless sleep.
I need to hear those words properly, too. Leon thinks and then waits. When the pilot arrives, he sleeps dreaming up of countless ways he can say it to her again.
…
…
…
I just really needed to write something not angsty and aeon just being soft for each other, so here's a bite-sized oneshot based on the prompt, 'I might never get another chance to say this.'
Criticisms are welcome! :) I'm practicing how to write more intuitively so this was done in a bit of a rush to curb my tendency to overthink.